Centre has a variety of programs this season

Fri, 01/31/2014 - 8:54amThe Citizen

The Centre for Performing and Visual Arts in Newnan continues its 10th anniversary year with several community performances in the coming months.
Located at 1523 Lower Fayetteville Road in Newnan, the Centre for Performing and Visual Arts is the Coweta County School System’s premier arts facility, and was constructed by the Coweta County Board of Education in 2004 through the community-supported Education Special Purpose Local Sales Tax (ESPLOST).

In addition to serving Coweta students, the Centre’s core mission is be “an extension of the classroom no matter the age of the student,” and the Centre’s staff and patrons are presenting a full slate of performances for the Coweta community throughout their winter season. For more information about the Centre, visit thecentreonline.netor call at 770-254-2787.
After opening the 2014 season with a return of the “Masters of Motown” earlier in January, the Centre continues with several school-based community performances, and Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” Major performances include:“Macbeth” - Feb.6, at 7 p.m. Ticket prices are $10.

Brought to the Centre stage by the National Players, Shakespeare’s classic tragedy “Macbeth” is a twisted tale which examines the brutal consequences of unchecked ambition. For an ambitious couple gripped with murderous thoughts, reality proves to be elastic. Witches, floating daggers, moving forests, and blood that refuses to wash away—who can tell what is real and what is imagined?
Now touring for its 65th consecutive year, National Players is a unique theatre ensemble that brings innovative productions to communities across the United States. Its productions engage audiences and examine the intersection between great works of literature and contemporary life. Committed to excellence and accessibility, National Players makes the classics current.

“The Glass Castle” - Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10.
The Centre for Performing and Visual Arts in conjunction with the Centre Patrons present American Place Theatre in a performance of “The Glass Castle,” a one-person theatrical adaptation of Jeannette Walls’ New York Times bestselling memoir of survival and resiliency told through the eyes of a young girl. It is the saga of the restless Walls family, led by a crusty eccentric and his volatile artist wife. The author and her siblings are often left to fend for themselves as the family’s precarious lifestyle necessitates frequently doing “the skedaddle.” Meanwhile, they cherish the vision of Dad’s creation of a fabulous home, a glass castle.

The show is directed by Wynn Handman, the company’s Artistic Director, and performed by Sarah Franek. The evening will begin at 7 p.m. with a pre-performance discussion led by a member of American Place Theatre and will conclude with a post-performance discussion immediately following the show.
Based in New York City, the American Place Theatre is committed to nurturing the talents of American authors, playwrights and actors, producing high-quality new work by diverse American writers and to pursuing pluralism and diversity in all its endeavors. Actors for whom American Place has been a launching pad include Mary Alice, Ellen Barkin, Roscoe Lee Browne, Kathleen Chalfont, Michael Douglas, Faye Dunaway, Sandy Duncan, Morgan Freeman, Richard Gere, Joel Grey, Dustin Hoffman, Frank Langella, Mary MacDonnell, Zakes Mokae, Howard Rollins, John Spencer, Ralph Waite, Sam Waterson and Sigourney Weaver.

The American Place Theatre’s Literature to Life series offers professionally staged theatrical adaptations of significant American literary works. The series was featured at the Albany Performing Arts Center two seasons ago with performances of Sherman Alexie’s “Flight” and Sue Monk Kidd’s “The Secret Life of Bees” and last season with performances of Frank McCourt’s “Teacher Man” and Greg Mortenson’s “Three Cups of Tea.” The theatre, having received over 30 Obies and 16 Audelcos, is critically acclaimed as a birthing place for artistic endeavors at the crossroad of literature and live performance for 47 years.

“Driving Miss Daisy” - March 14, 2014 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12.
Brought to the Centre Stage by Philadelphia’s Walnut Street Theatre, Alfred Uhry’s classic play “Driving Miss Daisy” is a funny, timeless, searing, and ultimately hopeful meditation on growing old, relationships, and loyalty. This iconic tale of pride, changing times and the transformative power of friendship has warmed the hearts of millions. “Driving Miss Daisy” won the Pulitzer Prize and the film version of this beautiful story, starring Morgan Freeman and Jessica Tandy, won multiple Academy Awards including the Oscar for Best Picture.
Set against the backdrop of the civil rights era “Driving Miss Daisy” tells the story of Miss Daisy and her newly hired Chauffeur Hoke. The relationship of Daisy and Hoke - spanning a 25 year period - is a reflection of critical changes in American society, and deal with anti-semitism, racism, and class differences as the bond between the two principle figures grows ever stronger. Full of wit and charm, Driving Miss Daisy is moving in more ways than one.

Founded in 1809, Walnut Street Theatre is the oldest continuously operating theatre in the United States. For more than 200 years, this venerable institution has stood the test of time to become a staple of Philadelphia’s, and for that matter, America’s cultural community. The landmark theatre has been graced by some of America’s most legendary performers including Ethel Barrymore, Marlon Brando, Sidney Poitier, Helen Hayes and Kathryn Hepburn, and has staged a remarkably wide range of entertainment and national events including circus, opera, vaudeville, lectures, music, dance, motion pictures, live theatre and even the first televised Presidential Debate between Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. “Driving Miss Daisy” marks Walnut Street’s fourth national tour, following “The Glass Menagerie,” “Proof, “and “Around the World in 80 Days.”

The Centre for Performing and Visual Arts is located at 1523 Lower Fayetteville Road in Newnan. For directions, or to get more information about these or other upcoming Centre events, call 770-254-2787, or visit thecentreonline.net.
For a full list of performances – by students or for students - visit thecentreonline.net and see the Coweta Schools Event List and the Children’s Educational Performances calendars.